Refusing mandatory National Service won’t lead to prison, home secretary says after Tory policy launch
Nobody would go to jail for refusing to comply with National Service under a Conservative government, the home secretary has said.
In the Conservatives’ first policy announcement of the general election campaign, Rishi Sunak said on Saturday he would introduce a new form of mandatory National Service for 18-year-olds if his party wins the vote in July.
They would be given the choice of a full-time military placement for 12 months or a scheme to volunteer for one weekend a month for a year.
The announcement came two days after defence minister Dr Andrew Murrison told the Commons the government has “no plans” to reintroduce National Service and doing so would “damage morale, recruitment and retention and would consume professional military and naval resources”.
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‘Refusing National Service won’t lead to jail’
The military option would be selective but questions have arisen over whether any teenager who refuses to do either option would be punished.
Talking to Sky News’s Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips, Home Secretary James Cleverly said: “There’s going to be no criminal sanctions, nobody’s going to jail over this.”
He added that “nobody will be compelled to do the military element” but said those who do will be paid – while those who choose to volunteer will not be paid.
Mr Cleverly said the main point of the policy is to make sure “people mix with people outside their bubble” for “community cohesion”.
He said those who choose the military option “will be motivated to join the military” after spending a year with the Armed Forces.
Mr Sunak released a video on TikTok on Sunday explaining the new policy to young adults.
No plans to reintroduce National Service
The military service announcement came just two days after defence minister Dr Andrew Murrison answered a question from fellow Conservative Mark Pritchard about whether an assessment had been made to reintroduce National Service.
Dr Murrison said: “The government has no current plans to reintroduce National Service.”
He said the “demanding, increasingly technical, nature of defence” means highly trained, professional men and women are needed to best defend the country.
“If potentially unwilling National Service recruits were to be obliged to serve alongside the professional men and women of our Armed Forces, it could damage morale, recruitment and retention and would consume professional military and naval resources,” he said.
Dr Murrison added that if National Service recruits were in separate units it would be “difficult to find a proper and meaningful role for them, potentially harming motivation and discipline”.
‘Surprise’ policy move dreided as ‘deeply cynical’ by defence insider
The prime minister appears to have had what some insiders regard as a belated epiphany about the critical importance of defence – and now even National Service.
It was just four months ago that Rishi Sunak’s spokesperson slapped down the outgoing head of the army for advocating the need for civilians to be trained to fight given the dangers of living in what the defence secretary has called “a pre-war world”.
General Sir Patrick Sanders had simply been using a speech to state a blunt reality – war and preparing for war is a whole-nation effort as demonstrated daily by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, where Ukrainian citizen soldiers are fighting and dying on the frontline.
Rather than support him, a Downing Street spokesperson at the time said that “hypothetical scenarios” involving possible wars were “not helpful” and ruled out any move towards a conscription model for the military.
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Cohesive society
Despite this clear rejection of the idea, the Conservatives have made it their first new major policy announcement.
Mr Cleverly said: “We want to build a society where people mix with people outside their own communities, mix with people from different backgrounds, different religions, different income levels.
“The bulk of this is about helping build a cohesive society where people mix outside their bubble.”
The Conservatives said the National Service programme would cost £2.5bn a year and would be funded by cash previously used for the UK Shared Prosperity Fund and cracking down on tax avoidance and evasion.
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James Cleverly speaking to Trevor Phillips on Sky News
But Labour’s shadow work and pensions secretary, Liz Kendall, accused the policy of being “yet another unfunded spending commitment”.
She told Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips: “That UK Prosperity Fund is supposed to be used to tackle economic inactivity and helping people get back into work so that really undermines another one of their arguments.
“This is an unfunded commitment, a headline-grabbing gimmick.”
She added that it does not deal with the big challenges facing young people, and said Labour has a “fully costed, fully funded plan to give young people those real opportunities that they need to build up”.
Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch has called on Sir Keir Starmer to sack Treasury minister Tulip Siddiq over allegations she lived in properties linked to allies of her aunt, Sheikh Hasina, the deposed prime minister of Bangladesh.
It comes after the current Bangladeshi leader, Muhammad Yunus, said London properties used by Ms Siddiq should be investigated.
He told the Sunday Times the properties should be handed back to his government if they were acquired through “plain robbery”.
Tory leader Ms Badenoch said: “It’s time for Keir Starmer to sack Tulip Siddiq.
“He appointed his personal friend as anti-corruption minister and she is accused herself of corruption.
“Now the government of Bangladesh is raising serious concerns about her links to the regime of Sheikh Hasina.”
Ms Siddiq insists she has “done nothing wrong”.
Her aunt was ousted from office in August following an uprising against her 20-year leadership and fled to India.
Ms Siddiq is also named with her aunt in Bangladesh court documents about meetings with the Russian government.
Tory leader Kemi Badenoch has called on Sir Keir to sack the minister
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As economic secretary to the Treasury, Ms Siddiq is responsible for policy on both the City and tackling corruption.
She referred herself to the prime minister’s ethics watchdog on Monday following the reports about the properties.
On the same day, the prime minister said: “Tulip Siddiq has acted entirely properly by referring herself to the independent adviser, as she’s now done, and that’s why we brought into being the new code.
“It’s to allow ministers to ask the adviser to establish the facts, and yes, I’ve got confidence in her, and that’s the process that will now be happening.”
Police in Aberdeen have widened the search area for two sisters who disappeared four days ago in the city.
Eliza and Henrietta Huszti, both 32, were last seen on CCTV on Market Street after leaving their home on Tuesday at around 2.12am.
The sisters – who are part of a set of triplets and originally from Hungary – crossed the Victoria Bridge to the Torry area and turned right on to a footpath next to the River Dee.
Eliza and Henrietta Huszti were last seen on CCTV in Market Street. Pic: Police Scotland/PA
They headed in the direction of Aberdeen Boat Club but officers said there is no evidence to suggest the missing women left the immediate area.
Specialist search teams, police dogs and a marine unit have been trying to trace the pair.
The sisters crossed Victoria Bridge before walking along a footpath next to the River Dee
The pair were heading in the direction of Aberdeen Boat Club on the south side of the River Dee
Further searches are being carried out towards the Port of Aberdeen’s South Harbour and Duthie Park.
Police Scotland said it is liaising with authorities in Hungary to support the relatives of the two sisters.
Chief Inspector Darren Bruce said: “Eliza and Henrietta’s family are understandably extremely worried about them and we are working tirelessly to find them.
“We are seriously concerned about them and have significant resources dedicated to the inquiry.”
The sisters, from Aberdeen city centre, are described as slim with long brown hair.
Henrietta Huszti. Pic: Police Scotland
Eliza Huszti. Pic: Police Scotland
Officers have requested businesses in and around the South Esplanade and Menzies Road area to review their CCTV footage for the early morning of Tuesday 7 January.
Police added they are keen to hear from anyone with dashcam footage from that time.
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